He came from a wealthy stock. He was educated in the best schools. He was a soldier. He was a radical. He was an adept. Some will describe him as unpatriotic, while others see him as a nationalist. Some see him as a villain and others see him as a hero who fought for justice. In life and in death, Ojukwu appeared to have embodied the paradoxes of life and its extremes. Notwithstanding his rare characteristics represented in a somewhat mystic personality, the name Ojukwu will for a long time remain synonymous with the defunct Biafra. As the ex-warlord of…

There will be no breeding place for mosquitoes in Owerri, if Dr Samuel Iheanacho Madugba has his way. He will rid the town of litter, drain the gutters and ensure adequate refuse collection. Dr Sam will create temporary dumps on Douglas road and Ekeonunwa, even if it means knocking down a few buildings. Monthly clean ups will be compulsory, continuous and regulated. People won’t wait for a week, month or even a year to have the garbage removed from streets. But that’s not all. The goodly doctor will take the cleanup campaign to schools also. He will ensure children are…

Glaucoma is the 2nd leading cause of blindness in the world after cataract. World Glaucoma week is celebrated from 10th to 16th of March, every year and 12th of March is usually recognized as World Glaucoma day. From the free eye project we have carried out in various parts of Imo State; we discovered that the prevalence of glaucoma is very high in Imo State. Glaucoma has been called the silent “thief of sight” because the loss of vision often occurs gradually over a long period of time and symptoms only occur when the disease is quite advanced. And once…

The news that the House of Representatives, after 18 months of foot-dragging has finally toed the step of the Upper Legislative Chamber in proposing laws banning the practice of gay marriage, homosexuality, lesbianism and other sexual aberrations in the country, has gladdened many hearts. Henceforth, Churches and Mosques are forbidden from conducting same sex marriages while gay and lesbian couples who marry could face up to 14 years each in prison. Witnesses or anyone who helps such couples marry could be sentenced to 10 years behind bars. Anyone taking part in a group advocating for gay rights or caught in…

Christ the perfect mediator of salvation is Christ the Victor over death. For Luke the raising of the young man of Nain (Gosp) is a sign of the coming of the messianic times. To express this he constructs his account on the models of Elijah’s miracle (1R) while showing in a series of particularities the infinite superiority of Jesus. THE REVIVAL OF THE WIDOW’S SON IS A SIGN In v.22 of same chapter to define His identity Jesus says: “the dead will be raised”, He announces a fact that already took place. This messianic hope is based on Is…

See the previous article on this topic Then the massacre of the Holy Innocents. Does that incident hit us? Think of it! : The first effect of the Saviour’s birth was that almost every family in the area with a male child was plunged into mourning. Every babe under two years was murdered, butchered. And as a mother, Mary knew the impact on the mothers whose children were massacred. What excruciating agony and desolate darkness her faith must have gone through! What a superhuman effort it must have taken for her to remain loyal, to continue to believe, respect and…

See the previous part of this article Again crowning the above truth, the episode of John 19:25-27 makes us to understand that Mary had no other children. If all these men were the sons of Mary, the natural thing Christ could do was to entrust her to other children for them to take care of their mother. But He gave her to john the beloved, whom we know as the son of Zebedee. John (19:26-27) captures it thus: “Jesus saw his mother and the disciple she loved standing there; so he said to his mother, “He is your son”. Then…

When the Chief Executives of the 36 states of the federation formed the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) soon after the return to civil rule in 1999, Nigerians welcomed the idea as a laudable development capable of strengthening the then fledging nascent democracy. The Forum, as a coalition of the elected governors is a non-partisan association which seeks to promote unity in governance and better understanding among states to ensure a healthy and beneficial relationship between the states and other tiers of government. It is on record that the Forum has played useful role at certain critical moments of crisis in…

MORAL IMPLICATIONS The practice of sharing money to children in primary and secondary schools in Imo state carries with it strong moral implications. It raises serious question as to whether that remains the best way to demonstrate the governor’s large hearted disposition towards children in the state. It concerns us principally because the money in question belongs to the state; it is not as if the governor is sharing his personal money to the children which any other person can do without raising moral questions.In the first instance, a democratically elected government should be able to listen to parents who…

BREAD AND WINE FOR THE LIFE OF MEN Banquet is a fact so profoundly human that it reflects in all religious and among all peoples a familiar and social significance, a significance of human solidarity and of cult. It even has the capacity of symbolizing communion with the dead and with God. Such significance and capacity already stressed in the old covenant acquire an immense increase in the new, in “Coena Domini”. OFFERING OF BREAD AND WINE, SPONTANEOUS ACT OF CULT TO CREATOR One of the most typical figures of the Bible is the pagan priest – King Melchizedek…

No, you’re not in Rome! You’re not also in a church or cathedral – Catholic or Anglican. You’re at Prince Tina, a place where ‘holy wears’ are made with gifted hands. A beautiful arrangement of vestments is the first sign that you are in a different tailoring environment. The colours are in purple, red, white, gold and green, all cleverly put together with matching symbols and embroidery. You’re tempted to run your fingers on the garments but are somehow restrained – “they’re holy!” Yet the beauty grips you, and you wish you could own at least one but you cannot….

Chioma has just discovered that her new employer (a pharmaceutical company licensed by NAFDAC to produce certain drugs in Nigeria) is producing fake drugs for sale in the Nigerian market. She is deeply troubled. On one hand she worries that the fake drugs may hurt unsuspecting Nigerians, if she does not speak out. On the other hand she is worried that she may loose her job, if she speaks out. So, she called again asking: “What should I do?” “Whistleblowing”, as Professor Michelle Cotton of the University of Baltimore has described it, “is the action of bringing to public attention…

Apostolic Letter of October 11, 2011, titled Porta Fedei (The Door of Faith), His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI declared the Year of Faith. The Year began on October 11, 2012. It will end on November 24, 2013. Pope Benedict’s Year of Faith may be named too Year of the Blessed Virgin Mary chiefly because the faith of Mary is not only unsurpassable, but it is also the most extraordinary thing in her life. Her fiat was the first Pentecost, the first mission in the spirit which gave flesh and blood to the WORD at the Annunciation. The Incarnation is a…

Everything God does is perfect, He is never wrong. Often we complain and nag about life, and the negative things that happen/befall to us, forgetting that nothing is random before our maker, and that everything has a purpose. A story was once told about a King who had a male servant who in all circumstances has always said to him; “My king, do not be discouraged because everything God does is perfect, no mistakes”. One day, they went hunting and a wild animal attacked the king, the servant managed to kill the animal but couldn’t prevent his majesty from losing…

The church teaches that Mary was a virgin and that Jesus is her only son, as He is the only son of the Father. One then wonders what the bible meant when it speaks of Jesus’ brothers and sisters, which our separated brethren have wrongly and literally understood from our contemporary culture and view point forgetting that the scripture is written within a particular point in time and within the Jewish culture (Jewish culture). Little wonder the scriptures rightly said, how can they know unless they are taught? (Rom 10:14), while the Igbos say, “onye n’anoghi ebe eliri ozu ya…

The novel narrative possesses limitless capacity to explore space and time to tell an extended story, commenting on particular events and characters. It has the advantage of travelling to distant places and different locations to influence individual minds. On the other hand, the novel is an individual enterprise which some critics, like Eustace Palmer, have argued is a western genre which does not suit the African literary environment. In the West, Ian Watt observes the influence of the philosophical thinking of Descartes and John Locke in the development of the novel. Descartes’ self definitive statement, ‘I think therefore I am’…

Statement of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, issued at the end of the Retreat to mark the Year of Faith(May 11-17, 2013, at the Daughters of Divine Love Retreat and Conference Centre, Abuja. We, Catholic Bishops of Nigeria have spent this last week in prayer to mark the Year of Faith. During this period, we have reflected and prayed for the Church in Nigeria and our dear country. We are confident that prayer remains an indispensable means for restoring our country to normalcy. For the last two years, we have witnessed an unprecedented escalation of violence and criminality across…

Imo State is steadily attracting hundreds of inquisitive visitors and tourists who want to see for themselves Governor Rochas Okorocha’s unbelievable structural and infrastructural accomplishments. Both the landscape and skyscape of the major cities of Okigwe, Orlu and especially, Owerri the state capital have changed so drastically that anyone who was last in Imo State by mid-year of 2011, barely two years ago, would question his eyes if they were seeing correctly should he enter the state today. This is not a debatable political issue. One is talking of what the eye can see and perceive. It is therefore horrific…

On the other hand, a proto-oncogene is a dominant host gene that is homologous to an oncogene found in a virus but which can induce transformation only after being altered (such as mutation or a change of context). Often, proto-oncogenes encode proteins that function to stimulate cell division, inhibit cell differentiation, and halt cell death. All of these processes are important for normal human development and for the maintenance of tissues and organs. Oncogenes, however, typically exhibit increased production of these proteins, thus leading to increased cell division, decreased cell differentiation, and inhibition of cell death; taken together, these phenotypes…

Cancer may be described as any tumor arising from abnormal and uncontrolled division of cells that then invade and destroy surrounding tissues. Most of them are named after the organ or cell in which they start e.g. liver cancer, cervical cancer, skin cancer etc. Cancers are grouped into: carcinoma when they arise in the epithelium, sarcoma when they involve connective tissues, leukemia with origin in blood or bone marrow, lymphoma arising from B or T lymphocytes (white blood cells), myeloma originating from plasma cells, and central nervous system cancer when the cells of the CNS are involved. Cancer is a…